1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a model calculation unit for a control unit in which data-based function models for carrying out functions on the hardware side are implemented. The present invention also relates to a method for calculating data-based function models in such a model calculation unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Control units having a main processor unit and a separate model calculation unit for calculating data-based function models are known from the related art. The publication DE 10 2010 028 266 A1, for example, shows a control unit having an additional logic circuit as a model calculation unit, which is designed on the hardware side for calculating exponential functions. This makes it possible to support Bayesian regression methods in a hardware unit, which are required in particular for calculating Gaussian process models.
The model calculation unit is on the whole designed to carry out mathematical processes for calculating the data-based function model based on parameters and node or training data. In particular, the model calculation unit is designed on the hardware side for efficient calculation of exponential functions, thereby making it possible to calculate Gaussian process models at a higher computation rate than is possible in the main processing unit. Generally, configuration data which include parameters and nodes for calculating the data-based function model are read into the model calculation unit prior to calculation in the latter, and subsequently the calculations based on the configuration data are carried out by the hardware of the model calculation unit. The previous implementation of the hardware of such a model calculation unit may, however, lead to numerical problems during the calculation in the case of unfavorable configuration data, so that not all data-based function models determined off-line may be stably calculated on the model calculation unit.